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If you are in the manufacturing sector, you should not deploy your Work Permit and S Pass holders to work in a retail or food and beverage setting or outlet. You need to employ them under a separate services account. To apply for a services account, write to the Work Pass Division using iSubmit.

Foreign worker eligibility

You can only hire foreign workers who satisfy the conditions for source countries, age when applying and maximum period of employment.

Source countries or regions

You can employ foreign workers from these countries or regions:

Malaysia

People’s Republic of China (PRC)

North Asian sources (NAS):

Hong Kong (HKSAR passport)

Macau

South Korea

Taiwan

Age when applying

The minimum age for all non-domestic foreign workers is 18 years old.

When applying for a Work Permit:

Malaysians must be below 58 years old.

Non-Malaysians must be below 50 years old.

Maximum period of employment

For the manufacturing sector, the maximum number of years a foreign worker can work in Singapore on a Work Permit is as follows:

Quota and levy

The number of Work Permit holders that you can hire is limited by quota (or dependency ratio ceiling) and subject to a levy. The levy rates are tiered so that those who hire close to the maximum quota will pay a higher levy.

The daily levy rate only applies to Work Permit holders who did not work for a full calendar month. The daily levy rate is calculated as follows: (Monthly levy rate X 12) / 365 = rounding up to the nearest cent.

Malaysia – Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM). If you wish to use a diploma or higher qualification, you need to produce a copy of the transcript or a letter from the institution stating the course duration.

Earn a fixed monthly salary of at least $1,600. You can update your worker’s salary using WP Online.

Worked at least 4 years in Singapore as a Work Permit holder.

Required safety courses

Foreign workers who handle metals and machinery in metalworking industry must take one of the following safety courses before their Work Permits can be issued:

Metalworking Safety Orientation Course (MSOC)

Apply Workplace Safety and Health in Metal Work

As soon as you get in-principle approval, register the workers for the course. They should take the course within 2 weeks of arriving in Singapore. The Work Permit cannot be issued until they take the course.

As an employer, you are responsible for your workers passing the test. If they fail the course, they should retake it as soon as possible. They need to pass the course within 3 months of arrival or their Work Permit could be revoked.

Course requirements during employment

Foreign workers in the metalworking industry need to retake and pass the safety course based on these timelines:

If they have worked in the metalworking industry for

They must pass the safety course

6 years or less

Once every 2 years

More than 6 years

Once every 4 years

When renewing a Work Permit, the worker’s safety course certificate must be valid for more than 1 month on the day of renewal. Otherwise the Work Permit will not be renewed.